HOME | DD

Description
Although they grow no bigger than a Finch, Snapping Fantails would not be able to fly if they lived in Earth's atmosphere. Their head is rather large relative to their bodies and the surface area of their wings is rather small. Thankfully the gravity on Lyell-3 is lower than on Earth and the forests where it lives provide plenty of updrafts to assist its flight.

Snapping Fantails live in the garden layer of Lyell-3's forest, where many flowers, vines and shrubs grow on the bark of the trees. But it doesn't feed on plants, but on the insects that share its habitat. They are extremely agile and move relatively fast, so much so that they are able to snatch an insect off a plant without having to come in contact with the latter. The whiskers at the front of its face cause some drag but are vital for preventing a collision with an obstacle.

Due to their large head and scrawny legs, these flyers are unable to stand upright. Snapping Fantails must either roost upside down by clinging onto a leaf or rest on their bellies. The second option is less preferred because the Fantail will need to push itself off its resting place to gain enough momentum to fly, making escape from predators difficult. Its only defense from attackers are its osteoderm and talons, which have little effect on large animals.

"At first I was tempted to change the body shape of this animal because it looked like it would have too much difficulty flying. But then I remembered that one source of inspiration for this alien was the Dimorphodon, which shares a similar body shape. So I left it alone. The main inspiration however came from The Future is Wild's Flutterbird, which was also able to snatch insects off of tree branches."

FUN FACTS
Snapping Fantail heads are big because their have a lot of muscle with great biting power. They need them to immediately kill the insects they catch and prevent them for attacking back.
Snapping Fantails were named after Australia's Grey Fantails, which are also agile flyers.
The vocal sacs of the Snapping Fantail is almost directly underneath its tongue, a unique feature among Lyell-3's life forms.

Description
Although they grow no bigger than a Finch, Snapping Fantails would not be able to fly if they lived in Earth's atmosphere. Their head is rather large relative to their bodies and the surface area of their wings is rather small. Thankfully the gravity on Lyell-3 is lower than on Earth and the forests where it lives provide plenty of updrafts to assist its flight.

Snapping Fantails live in the garden layer of Lyell-3's forest, where many flowers, vines and shrubs grow on the bark of the trees. But it doesn't feed on plants, but on the insects that share its habitat. They are extremely agile and move relatively fast, so much so that they are able to snatch an insect off a plant without having to come in contact with the latter. The whiskers at the front of its face cause some drag but are vital for preventing a collision with an obstacle.

Due to their large head and scrawny legs, these flyers are unable to stand upright. Snapping Fantails must either roost upside down by clinging onto a leaf or rest on their bellies. The second option is less preferred because the Fantail will need to push itself off its resting place to gain enough momentum to fly, making escape from predators difficult. Its only defense from attackers are its osteoderm and talons, which have little effect on large animals.

"At first I was tempted to change the body shape of this animal because it looked like it would have too much difficulty flying. But then I remembered that one source of inspiration for this alien was the Dimorphodon, which shares a similar body shape. So I left it alone. The main inspiration however came from The Future is Wild's Flutterbird, which was also able to snatch insects off of tree branches."

FUN FACTS
Snapping Fantail heads are big because their have a lot of muscle with great biting power. They need them to immediately kill the insects they catch and prevent them for attacking back.
Snapping Fantails were named after Australia's Grey Fantails, which are also agile flyers.
The vocal sacs of the Snapping Fantail is almost directly underneath its tongue, a unique feature among Lyell-3's life forms.